


You Have to Lose to Win

by magicalartist



Category: Once Upon a Time (TV)
Genre: F/F
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-05-26
Updated: 2015-05-26
Packaged: 2018-04-01 08:17:28
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 10,940
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4012426
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/magicalartist/pseuds/magicalartist
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Emma gave up everything for Regina, always for Regina. Can she beat the Darkness vying for control, Can True Love really break any curse?</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Hearts Shattered

**Author's Note:**

> This is gonna be Angsty... but it is worth it

Time froze the moment metal clanged against the cement. She couldn’t breathe. She was suffocating, choking on the overwhelming emotions roiling in her gut. Strong arms wrapped around her waist, holding her fast, holding her up as she stared in disbelief.

Nothing moved, nothing stirred, just ragged breathing from everyone on the scene, completely stunned at what they had just witnessed. And then a wail rose, a sharp cry of deep, cutting pain tore through the still night air. It took her a moment to realize the sound came from her. arms wrapped tighter around her and she panicked, fighting her way free, dropping to her knees, inconsolably crying. her son appeared on the scene, confused, and very concerned. She could hear them telling him to stay back, but he fought his way through and threw himself in front of his mother.

“Mom…. What happened? Where’s Emma?”

She couldn’t speak. Guilt wrapped itself tightly around her, trying to drown her. Henry threw his arms around her, trying to calm her. Her son was the only thing keeping her face from the pavement.

She could hear snow sobbing inconsolably, as David helplessly tried to comfort her. Hook was standing frozen in shock and Robin knelt next to Regina, once again trying to wrap her in his arms. She shoved him off, “ no!” her tone was both angry and fearful. It surprised them both but she couldn’t figure out why, and she hurt too much to care.

He backed away, hurt and confused.  “ Henry, come, we should get you out of here.”

“ I am not leaving mom… where is Emma? Why won’t anyone tell me what is going on?”

Henry’s voice rose in panic, and the tremors in his voice cut through Regina’s haze.

“Henry…” she choked out. He knelt in front of her again, hands on her shoulders, his eyes searching hers. “mom, where is Emma? What happened?”

“she….” Regina wrestled for words, trying to figure out how to explain to her son that Emma was gone, that she had given everything for a reformed evil queen. The words wouldn’t come. She took a deep, steadying breath, bringing herself back under control, for her son. Always for him.

“the Dark One’s magic was released when Gold… it has to be tethered to someone…. It came after me…. and Emma…”

 She lost the ability to speak as the memory washed over her again, Emma’s last words haunting her, _“ you worked too hard to have your happiness destroyed!”_

_Emma had forced her back and Regina had run to Robin’s arms and had immediately regretted it._

Hook’s voice rang out bitterly, barely containing his rage. “Emma gave up her happy ending, gave up her true love, gave up everything for the Evil Queen.” He spit out Regina’s former title with disgust and stepped forward as if to attack her.

Henry rose to his full adolescent height and glared at the man, “ Emma did everything she could to protect everyone’s happy ending, not just my mom’s. that’s who she is, that’s what she does. I can see you didn’t step in and volunteer, none of you did. I bet you all just stood by and watched the whole thing didn’t you? as your daughter, your girlfriend, literally gave up everything for you!”

Henry’s voice rose sharply in anger and it was his mother who was now placing her hand on his arm, calming him. “Henry, this isn’t what Emma would want. She would want us to work together, to bring her back. and we will… I promise you that.” Tears were still streaking down her cheeks as Emma’s words replayed in her head over and over again.

Her voice still trembled, and her limbs were still weak. She could still feel the residual effects of the darkness trying to take her. she had almost resigned herself to it when Emma had stepped forward.

Hook stepped forward again,  this time headed for the dagger but Henry was faster. He snatched it off the ground and held it up in open defiance of the pirate, almost daring him to attack.

Hook stopped, and his tone became whining, desperate, “Henry, I am her true love… the dagger should stay with me, I can protect it, I can protect her.”

Henry practically snarled at the man, “ you already had your chance, you filthy pirate, Emma deserved better than you. I don’t believe you are her true love at all!”

Regina was shocked at Henry’s tone, at the deep seeded rage and resentment towards Hook. Regina agreed with everything Henry had said, but she was worried that her son was taking a little too much after her. she stepped forward again, willing her aching body to move, willing her heart to be strong.

“Henry.” Her tone was soft, gentle even, as she turned her son to face her.

“ He doesn’t deserve her mom, he doesn’t!”

“ I know. but Emma loves him, and we have to respect that for now.”

Hooks confidence momentarily boosted, “ you heard her Henry, give me the dagger.”

Regina’s anger and protective nature surged up and she stepped around Henry, her voice becoming cold, her demeanor shifting to that of the authoritative mayor and queen. She wanted to hurt this man, this man who could think of no one but himself, but Emma loved him, and no matter how much it pained her, she would honor that.

“We are going to keep the dagger safe. That is what Emma would want. I know about darkness, I know about fighting it off and overcoming it, more than anyone else here. Emma helped me every step of the way. I owe this to her. I will make this right.”

Hook leered at her, “you are not worthy of her sacrifice. You were not worthy of her belief in you. you failed her. If I had killed you when you were on that table..”

The image of her strapped to the table, electricity coursing through her veins brought forth the anger she thought she had let go of towards the man responsible for her kidnapping. But the image of Emma just a few minutes ago, telling her she had worked too hard, watching Emma sacrifice herself to guard Regina stayed her hand from striking the Pirate.

She glared at him. “ you are right. I don’t deserve the second chance Emma gave me, or the third or fourth or fifth chances she gave me and I am not worthy of her sacrifice or her faith in me. but lets be clear Pirate, neither are you. we both failed her. she didn’t just sacrifice herself for me, but for Henry, for her family, for you!”

She ran  her hand through her hair and sighed heavily, “ I may not be worthy of her sacrifice, but I will be damned if I will fail her now. Her faith in me may well be unwarranted, but I will do everything I can to be worthy of it, to make it right. And you should do the same.”

David stepped forward, “ Regina is right Hook, she knows more about this kind of magic. And Regina understands Emma more than any of us do. We…” he gestured between Hook, himself and Snow, “we would be tempted to use the dagger, but Regina knows Emma, she knows how to get through to her like none of us do. We have to trust her with this.”

Hook continued to glare at Regina but slowly backed away, “ bloody hell, this is a mess…” he ran his hand over his face and turned away, shrugging off David’s arm as he stalked away.

Robin was still standing at a distance, carefully watching Regina. He took a step forward but Regina raised her hand, “not now Robin. I can’t do this right now. My son needs me. And he needs his other mother. I cannot do whatever this is until my family is whole again."

David and Snow both openly stared at Regina, mouths open. She glanced at her son and found a small wry knowing smile. He looked just like Emma in that moment, full of hope and a look that told her that he understood what she wasn’t saying, what she couldn’t bring herself to say. It was the same look Emma would give her and it made her heart clench painfully.

She reached out to her son, “come on Henry, let’s go home… we need to get some rest.. we will start in the morning.” she glanced at the Charmings’ and approached them carefully, “ we WILL fix this, I swear it, but for now… go home, rest… its what Emma would want.”

Snow grabbed Regina, yanking her into a hug and surprisingly, Regina let her. the smaller woman clung to her, sobbing and Regina struggled to maintain her own composure… _be strong.. for Henry… for Emma… they need you to be strong…_. Regina gently untangled herself from Snow, gave Charming a nod and took Henry’s hand. They left the scene behind with a purple flourish of smoke, Henry still clutching tightly to the dagger.

 

Henry slept in Regina’s bed that night, while she laid awake, staring at the name etched into the dagger. They had immediately crawled into her massive bed, still fully dressed, but too emotionally spent to care. Henry had demanded to know exactly what had happened and she told him, leaving nothing out. Then she held him close as they both cried. Eventually Henry had lost the battle for sleep and now slept with his head in her lap, his hands clutching at her, even asleep, as if he was afraid he would somehow lose her as well.

Regina had no idea how long she laid there, staring at the cold dagger, tracing her fingers over the letters, unaware of the tears staining her cheeks. Memories flooded through her, of all the times Emma Swan had saved her and it made her ache. “ it should have been me.” she whispered to the dark room.

She was unaware of Emma’s presence. Emma stood in the corner of the room, watching Regina and her son. Her hands were clenched tightly in fists as she silently wrestled with the darkness vying for control. She couldn’t help it. She needed to be close to her family. It was weak, it was dangerous, and yet somehow, it gave her strength. She knew she could trust Regina to care for their son. She knew she could trust Regina to understand her struggle, and she knew Regina would stop at nothing to help her.

Regina was crying softly, trying not to disturb her sleeping son. “oh Emma, why?”

Emma shook her head. She couldn’t explain it if she tried. It had been pure instinct, her only thought had been to save Regina, regardless of the cost. It always had been, ever since they met, ever since the first time their magic collided and connected. She could still remember that moment, when she had felt the need, the strong unexplainable desire to help Regina. She had simply placed her hand on Regina’s in support and the connection was immediate, and permanent. Ever since she had been sucked into that portal into the enchanted forest, ever since her return to Storybrooke, that bond had only strengthened. There had been no other option for her, she could not stand by and watch Regina lose everything. And she trusted Regina completely, knowing without a doubt that her friend would do the same for her.

Regina saw slight movement in the shadows and tensed ever so slightly before immediately relaxing, “Emma? Is that you?”

Emma remained in the shadows but sighed heavily, “ yes…”

Regina shivered at the difference in Emma’s tone. She could tell her friend was in pain. Regina moved to untangle herself from her sleeping son and Emma spoke sharply, “ no, don’t…. I don’t want you to see me like this…”

Regina’s heart broke at the obvious pain in Emma’s voice. She slipped out of the bed any way and approached Emma slowly, not wanting to scare her away.

“Regina, please… don’t.” Emma sounded panicked now, “ I don’t want to hurt you.”

Regina’s voice was calm, soothing, and strangely confident, “you won’t.”

“you don’t know that. I don’t know that. I want to hurt you right now…” Emma’s fingernails dug into her palms, trying to stop the violent images tearing through her skull. Her head pounded with intense pain, trying to fight off this darkness was incredibly painful. It felt like it was crawling through her veins, like a living thing. It had already made its way into her mind and was now battling its way around her heart.

Regina stepped even closer, ignoring Emma’s warnings. She stood directly in front of the woman now, and reached out to her. Her hands found Emma’s shoulders, trailing gently down her arms, leaving goosebumps in their wake. Her hands found Emma’s and she pressed the cold steel of the dagger into Emma’s hand, closing her hand around the hilt of the blade.

“ I trust you, Emma. I believe in you, the way you believed in me.”

Emma’s voice came out strangled, “ you really shouldn’t.” she tried to pass the dagger back to Regina but she refused to take it back, instead wrapping her arms tightly around the savior, pulling her close, inhaling the scent that was distinctly Emma.

Against her will, Emma felt herself relax into the embrace. _So this is what it feels like to be loved by the ferocious, independent stubborn Regina Mills._

That thought rocked her to her core, and nearly tore her out of Regina’s arms but Regina held her fast. “ I am not giving up on you Emma Swan. I will find a way to fix this, if it is the last thing I do.”

Regina was shocked by the irony of her own words. The evil queen who had once sworn to destroy everyone’s happiness was now swearing to restore it to the one person who gave up everything for her.

Emma let herself be held for a moment longer, appreciating the fact that Regina’s presence, and her touch pushed back the darkness, even if only temporarily. The darkness didn’t want her anywhere near Regina or Henry. It wanted her to hate them, to fear them and distrust them. but Emma clung to that thread of a connection she felt to the both of them with all her might. It was the only thing that kept the darkness from taking her completely. She shuddered in Regina’s arms as her will battled with the rage of the dark one.

Regina held her close for a long time before Emma finally pulled away. Regina still held their hands between them, keeping Emma’s hand closed over the dagger.

“ you are not alone Emma. We will do this the same way we do everything else… together.”

Emma tried to believe her but she was afraid. She remembered all the times that they had fought darkness together, all her previous requests that they be a team, all the times they had rescued each other and she tried to have hope. She really did, but hope was hard when she knew this was different. This was not their fight. The darkness wanted them divided, pitted against each other. Emma could not allow that to happen. This was her fight and hers alone. She knew she would lose, but she would be damned if the people she loved would get hurt in the process.

“ I need you to keep the dagger Regina. I don’t trust myself with it, and I don’t trust anyone else with it either. I need to know that you can protect Henry, and yourself from me if necessary.”

“ Emma…”

Emma’s tone was desperate now, pleading, full of fear and agony. “No. Regina, I need you to promise me, no matter what happens, that you will protect Henry, protect yourself… and my parents from me. I need you to swear it.”

Regina knew what Emma was asking of her, “ I wont kill you Emma. I cant.”

“swear to me, Regina, that you will keep them safe, no matter what. That you wont let me hurt them. please!”

Tears sprung in Regina’s eyes at the desperation in Emma’s voice. She accepted the dagger back, and bowed her head, “ I promise I will protect them.”

Emma pushed, “and you will do whatever is necessary?”

“Emma…” Regina’s voice was a broken plea, no more than a whisper…

Emma’s tone became dark, angry and Regina knew Emma was trying to scare her, “ Regina… I am a threat to your family, and I need to know you will do whatever it takes to protect them from me…”

“ you are my family too Emma…”

“ not like this I am not, I can’t be your family while I am like this. I am a threat and you have to see me that way.”

Regina stepped deliberately into Emma’s face, her tone fierce, “even like this Emma Swan, especially like this. I… care about you so much. You are… a dear friend to me and I can’t bear to lose you. What would I tell Henry?”

“that you were keeping your word to me. Regina, I don’t know how much longer I will be myself. I need to know, while I still am that you will keep your word. I wont make things easy for you.. this darkness in me is stronger than me, and it…” she trailed off, unable to continue.

Regina conceded, telling Emma what she wanted to hear, but meaning something else entirely, “I will do whatever it takes, I promise.”

Emma nodded in the darkness, satisfied for now. Regina tried to pull Emma into another hug but Emma sidestepped her.

“take care of Henry for me.. tell him I love him… and my parents….”

“ I will.” Tears slid down Regina’s cheeks and Emma’s heart won out for a moment longer. She stepped forward, finally stepping into the little bit of light provided by the moon. Regina gasped at Emma’s appearance. Her face was gaunt, her eyes sallow, tears trailing down her silvery cheeks. Emma gave her a wry smile and gently wiped Regina’s tears away with her thumb, letting her hand rest against Regina’s face in an unprecedented show of tenderness.

“try to move on and be happy Regina… don’t let this… don’t let it be for nothing…. You have an incredible heart and you deserve to be loved. Let yourself be loved… promise me that…” Emma’s voice was barely more than a whisper, her eyes searching Regina’s.

Regina couldn’t hold Emma’s gaze, it hurt too much. _How can I be happy knowing that it cost you everything? How can I move on when losing you left such a huge hole in my heart?_ The words never made it out of her mouth because Emma pressed a gentle kiss dangerously close to her mouth before taking a ragged breath, running her fingers through her tangled hair and flashing Regina a sheepish grin.

Emma gave Regina a quick hug, whispering in her ear, “Goodbye Regina.” And she was gone.

For the second time that night, Regina’s legs collapsed under her and she dropped to the floor in a graceless heap, weeping, clutching the dagger to her heaving chest. She didn’t know it was possible to hurt this much. She hadn’t even hurt this much when she had lost Daniel. That revelation startled her.  how had her feelings for the savior overshadowed her feelings for her first love?

For the first time, Regina realized why she had been so driven to despair during the lost year. It hadn’t been just about Henry. It had been about the blonde birthmother who had brought him into the world too. It was the loss of them both that had driven her nearly to the point of putting herself under a sleeping curse. Now her heart ached that deeply again and she was tempted to once again rip the heart out of her chest, just to lessen the pain.

Henry awoke to the sound of his mother sobbing on the floor and he immediately joined her, wrapping her in his arms, whispering comforting words, “we will fix it mom, we will get her back… its what we do.”

For the first time in Henry’s life, Regina allowed herself to be vulnerable, to be weak in front of him. She simply couldn’t contain the pain any longer. She leaned into his embrace and let herself weep bitterly, taking comfort in her son’s embrace. He whispered fierce promises, promises that from anyone else, she would never believe, but from her son, from their son, with the heart of the truest believer, she allowed herself to take comfort in his words. She knew he believed in Emma, in Regina, and in their power jointly. He had demonstrated unwavering faith in them both and he demonstrated it now as he held her close, promising to never let go, to never give up and telling his broken mother not to give up faith. He still had his arms wrapped around her several hours later when the sun came up.


	2. Desperate Measures

Three long, painful weeks past with no progress. Regina and Henry spent every waking moment pouring over spell books, reading ancient tomes, searching for answers. Belle leant help wherever she could, trying to share what insight she gained from her years with Gold. Even Maleficent and Lily joined the cause. Lily trying to redeem herself, and Mal offering silent support for Regina and the woman who brought her daughter back. the five of them spent their days researching, hunting for any information they could get their hands on about the dark one.  the charming’s worked separately and the pirate drank.

They worked tirelessly from sunrise until well after midnight, went home and collapsed for a few hours only to wake up and do it all again. Mal and Lily would follow them to the mansion, Mal would cook and force Regina to eat, Lily would make sure Henry’s needs were attended to. They would clean the house silently, do the chores and insure Regina and Henry went to sleep before leaving the mansion as quietly as they came and retire to Grannie’s Bed and Breakfast for the night.

 Emma had not been seen nor heard from since that night and it made Regina’s heart ache to think about it. every night she was haunted by dreams of Emma, moments between the two, promises, and rescues, and soft smiles accompanied with “trust me.” they all ended the same. Emma being swallowed by darkness, Emma’s eyes that final night, the gentle kiss and her final words ringing in Regina’s mind. Regina woke up crying out her name almost every night and every time, Henry would wrap his arms around his mother and cry with her, often shaking from similar dreams. It was taking its toll on them both.

The charming’s didn’t seem to be faring any better. Snow had deep circles under her red rimmed eyes, Charming’s shoulders drooped in exhaustion and defeat. Everyone was walking around like empty shells and none of them seemed to notice or care. Their only thought was how much they wanted Emma back. not the savior, not the breaker of the curse, but the woman herself. The woman who fearlessly fought for those she loved, who always put everyone else before herself, the woman who thought herself unlovable but had somehow managed to make a home for herself in the hearts of everyone who met her.

Regina missed her more than she thought was possible. She was consumed with thoughts of Emma.

At first Robin had tried to distract her from the pain, tried to offer her support, but she never let him past the porch of her home anymore, and finally whatever they had snapped after three weeks of her ignoring him.

He showed up on her porch with promises to help find Emma and she turned him down. He became frustrated, “she did that for you Regina, to protect your happy ending, to give you a chance at happiness, and you are wasting it. Your happy ending, your true love is standing right in front of you and you are wasting her sacrifice instead of enjoying the freedom she gave you.”

Regina stared at him with a look of utter disbelief. “she gave herself because she thought I had worked too hard for my happiness and didn’t want it ripped from me. My happiness is not a man. My happiness is finally being loved and accepted and forgiven. My happy ending is having a family, it’s the moments that I have with Henry, being friends with Em…” Regina found it too painful to say her name. … “the savior… Don’t you get that Robin? You are not my true love, you may be my soul mate but it was not my choice, it was fairy dust. She gave up herself to protect my right to choose. You don’t seem capable of understanding that and that makes me highly doubt that you are my true love. I didn’t see you capable of taking on that darkness for me.”

“I tried…”

“ you didn’t. you charged forward to pull me out, not to sacrifice yourself, but to help yourself. Em…  Swan was able to save me because she chose to take my place. You didn’t do that, you had that opportunity and you stood there and let someone else do it for you.”

“ Regina…”

“Enough Robin.” She waved her hand dismissively. “maybe we could have been something, once upon a time… but now… there is too much history, too many choices that we cannot undo and I am tired of pretending that this could realistically work. She  gave me a choice and this is my choice… if you truly love or care about me at all, you will respect it.”

Robin backed away a few steps and stared at his feet for a moment, “ so this is it then… you are choosing the savior over your soul mate?”

Regina’s head snapped up at his words, remembering something almost identical coming out of Gold’s mouth shortly before everything went to hell, _so you are choosing the savior over your beloved Robin Hood?_

She gave Robin Hood a sad smile, “ it would seem so…” she paused, a moment of clarity washing over her for the first time, and with it, a spark of hope, “ she did it for me, you know… she chose me, over her family, over Hook, many times… she always chose me… its only right that I choose her”

Robin shook his head sadly, “you know… I knew it would always come to this… I saw it a long time ago and yet I still pushed, I still tried, but I never really stood a chance… I knew it would always be her… you are right.. when it came to her decisions… she always chose you… I never really stood a chance against that.. I could never measure up in the face of that.”

He turned and walked away, his shoulders slumped. He paused by the gate and turned to face her once more, “ I will respect your wishes Regina, because I do love you. Not enough, not as much as she does and I realize that now. I wont stand in the way anymore.. and I hope… I hope you get her back… I really do. You deserve to be loved like that. That’s all I want for you.”

She stared after him, his words taking a moment to fully sink in and for the implication of his words to be fully realized but when they did, she sank to her knees, utterly spent. Realization dawned as their final conversation replayed in her mind, and every conversation before it. Emma’s eyes glittering in the dark,   _try to move on and be happy Regina...You have an incredible heart and you deserve to be loved. Let yourself be loved… promise me that…_ suddenly everything made sense. Their constant bickering, the tension, the looks Emma had given her. it all sank in and she cursed herself for being a complete fool. How could she not see it before?

She ran upstairs into her bedroom and found the dagger, staring at it with new eyes, and fresh pain. The pain of knowing that the woman who had given up everything for her had done it out of love. Out of love that until now, Regina had been completely oblivious to, so blind, not realizing that that love was not at all one sided. Emma had given everything for her and she wept because Emma had been suffering for three weeks, thinking that love would never be returned, not even expecting it to be returned.

She sank to her knees yet again, sobs wracking her body painfully.  “you idiot! How could you be so stupid?!”

She wasn’t sure who was the bigger fool, the impossible savior, or herself, who had been so blind to what was in front of her for so long. Memories washed over her with a new wave of guilt. Emma saving her from the fire. Emma saving her from the wraith. Emma instinctively grabbing her arm, connecting their magic. Emma helping her with the trigger. Emma with her in Neverland, fighting to get back their son. Emma begging Regina to understand that she had never wanted to hurt Regina by bringing back Marian. Emma pursuing her relentlessly, asking for a friend. Emma and _try again, together_. Emma and her fighting the chernabog in unision. Emma and _“we aren’t going to sacrifice you.”_ her constant need to make sure Regina was okay. Her constant presence, her reassurances, her bottomless optimism and faith in Regina _, I’m with Regina._ Emma’s face when Regina confessed that she needed her. Emma fighting her own darkness, and finally Emma sacrificing herself, and then coming to check on Regina and their son, even though she was in incredible pain…

Regina was still on the floor when Henry came home from another failed trip to the library. She pulled him into her arms and wept, begging his forgiveness, for being so foolish, for not seeing it before. He cried with her for a while and then stood and gave her a wry grin, one that looked distinctly like his blonde mother’s. “come on mom… we have work to do… I think I know where to start now.”

She stood to her feet, brushing herself off and nodded, her face full of grim determination… “ we have to get her back.”

“we will.”

 

                                                                                                                                 ***

 

It was Belle who gave them hope. She had shared many stories of her time with Gold but it was one story she had kept hidden, one that was too painful for her that she had held it back, but at Henry’s wide eyed hopeful gaze and Regina’s broken plea, she finally broke down and shared it.

“It was your idea actually…”

Regina gave her a puzzled look, “mine?”

“Yes… you told me that true love’s kiss was powerful enough to break any curse… I… I tried it on Gold… and it almost worked…”

Regina’s expression fell, her hopes dashed and guilt over the memories of her manipulating Belle and Gold early on in their relationship.

Belle saw her sadness and quickly added, “ Regina, it wasn’t your fault. I was a foolish girl… I actually believed that Gold loved me more than his power… if he had, it would have worked. I am sure of it. but power always came first for him.”

Henry grinned, “ there is hope, see mom?”

Regina shook her head, unsure… “ I don’t know…”

Belle nodded firmly, “ Regina, it didn’t work on Rumple because he wanted power more… Emm…. She didn’t want the power.. she wanted to save you. you come first… I would say that gives you a far better chance…”

“but Hook is her happy ending… wouldn’t he?”

Belle snorted in distaste, “ no, he isn’t. she loved him and she might have given him a happy ending.. but it was one sided… he hasn’t been seen or heard from since that night… besides… after everything went down.. who did she go to… who did she tell to keep the dagger?”

Regina was still not convinced, so Henry chimed in, “ mom, think about it. Gold took that power for himself, for his own means. Ma did it for you. I think Belle is right.. we can do this.”

Regina sighed heavily, “how… no one has seen nor heard from her since that night…”

“ you could always summon her…” Belle suggested, knowing exactly what Regina would say.

“Absolutely not… she gave me the dagger because she trusts me… If I summon her… it takes away her free will and will destroy any trust she has for me. I can’t risk that.”

Henry nodded in agreement, “ we just have to wait for her to come to us then…. And somehow, somehow you have to find a way to kiss her…”

Regina stared at her son, surprised that he seemed completely okay with the fact that his two moms were in love with each other.

Belle grinned and Regina allowed the small seed of hope in her heart to grow. _Maybe we can do this… maybe we can bring her back._

 

                                                                                                                        ***

 

Emma reappeared in Gold’s shop after Regina and Henry left.

“thank you.” she said softly.

Belle nodded, tearing up. She wanted to throw her arms around Emma but the look Emma gave her made her stop.

“Are you sure?”

“yes, Merlin said it’s the only way…”

Belle sighed, “ I wish you would let me tell her everything.”

“she can’t know, it’s the only way this works… the darkness is getting stronger in me every day…  and for now, I have to give in, at least at little, let it think it has won. they have to believe that too, or this wont work…  I just hope she will forgive me.”

“she will be really pissed at you, but she will forgive you.”

“do you think she will know what to do, when the time is right?”

Belle nodded firmly, “ Regina may be a little slow on the uptake when it comes to what is between you two, but she does love you, and when the time is right, she will figure that out and she will do whatever it takes.”

Emma sighed, running her hands through her hair. “ I hope so… I need her to be strong enough.”

Her skin still glittered in the sunlight and Belle could see the darkness swirling in Emma’s pupils. Largely, she seemed herself, but Belle could tell it was an effort. Emma was fighting a losing war, and she would be forced to lose in the end if she had any hopes of winning.

Belle moved forward and gave Emma a tight hug, despite her protests, “good luck Emma.”

Emma gave a curt nod and disappeared to wait for the right time.

                                                                                                                                 ***

 

As it turned out, Regina would not be given the chance to wait for Emma to resurface. A week after her visit to Belle,  Hook barged into Regina’s home with the Charming’s in tow, and ripped the dagger from Regina’s hands, claiming that he had the right to see his true love. The charming’s apologized profusely for interrupting her sleep but Hook had convinced them that Regina keeping the dagger was not doing any good and they needed to see their daughter. Regina raged at their selfishness and begged them not to summon Emma. But they wouldn’t listen. Hook shoved Regina aside, forcing her against the wall. Henry tore down the stairs and stepped between Hook and Regina, brandishing a sword.

“Give it back Hook. My Ma entrusted it to us for a reason. You will only anger her if you summon her.”

“Henry.. we have to see her, we have to know she is okay…its been three months… we need to know!” Snow pleaded with her grandson while Charming came around and easily disarmed him. The pair stood between Regina, Henry and the dagger.

Hook sauntered to the center of the room and in a loud voice, “ Dark One, Emma Swan, I summon thee!”

For a moment, everything was still, and they all held their breath. Then she was there, in front of them. Regina pulled Henry closer to her shielding his view of his other mother as much as she could while staring at the woman in awe. She had caught a glimpse of her that night, but this… this was not the same person at all.

She heard Snow’s gasp of horror, followed by her tears. She saw David protectively wrap his arms around her, as if shielding his wife from his daughter.

Emma wore all black, a heavy trench coat, open in the front revealing a skin tight top that left little to the imagination, black leather pants tucked into black boots. Her hair was piled up in a tight bun and she looked very much like the evil queen in all her glory, except for the scaly silver skin. Her eyes were dark and they glittered with anger as she took in the scene before her. Emma’s eyes swept over the room, eyeing the pirate with obvious disdain, sending glares at both her parents. Snow only cried harder when Emma rolled her eyes at their display.

 Her eyes swept to Regina, and Henry, straining against her hold on him, trying to see his other mother. Emma met Regina’s gaze and for a moment, her sharp edges softened,  the old Emma was there, for a second, her eyes asking the question Emma could never seem to hold back, _are you okay?_ Regina gave a faint nod and she tried to give Emma an apologetic smile, and she caught a glimpse, so faint she couldn’t be sure if she imagined it or not, Emma return it.

Hook cleared his throat, “Emma, my love…”

Emma’s sharp gaze snapped back to the man who summoned her, and the dagger in his hand. A sneer replaced her previous look and she took a predatory step towards him before he held up the dagger, “Stop right there swan.”

She cocked her head at him, rage and hatred rising in her features. Regina stared in shock, she had never seen this side of Emma. It was truly frightening.

“ how did you get my dagger? I know Regina would never give it to you… tell me, did you steal it from her. surely you didn’t dare take it by force…”

“I had to see you love… your parents..”

“ you dared to enter Regina’s home… threaten her and my son because you had to see me?” she shook with rage.

“Emma…” David tried to placate his daughter, “ we want to help you…”

“this isn’t you Emma,” Snow had found her voice, stepping towards her daughter. In an instant, both of her parents were against the wall, held there by an invisible force.

“isn’t it me though? Isn’t that why you were forced to  sacrifice Lily? Because this is exactly who I am? seems rather silly now doesn’t it… that horrific act, all for nothing…fate won out anyway…”

Her laughter sounded wrong. Regina shivered involuntarily.

Hook had started trembling, doubting the brilliance of his plan. She stepped towards him menacingly and with a flick of her wrist, the dagger was in her hands. She advanced on him swiftly now, and he backed away, tripping over the coffee table and falling to the ground. She sneered at him as he continued to back away, begging for his life… “please Emma, I want to help you.. that’s all I have ever wanted…”

“right… that’s why you have spent the last few weeks at the rabbit hole, drinking, because all you want is the best for me…”

She grabbed him by the lapel of his jacket and forced him against the wall, her face inches from his, the dagger against his neck.

“ I should kill you right now, you worthless scum. You were not worth my time… I loved you… once… you told me I was your happy ending. I loved you like the idiot I was, but I was never in love with you, I was an idiot, thinking making everyone else happy was enough.” she laughed again, as if it was absurd to her now.

“you told me I was your happy ending, and you know what I thought? Of course I am. Because only the savior is not allowed to have a happy ending. I only existed to make everyone else happy… well… not anymore… I never want to see you again Pirate…”

She spat the last sentence and shoved him roughly against the wall before releasing him. He scrambled towards her, grabbing her arm, yanking her into him for a desperate kiss…” this is for your own good swan, you will thank me one day.”

His kiss was rough, sloppy and short lived. She threw him away from her, his head slamming into the wall with force. She spit on him and wiped her mouth in disgust before advancing on him again, this time, with murder in her eyes.

Regina acted on instinct. She gently pushed Henry aside and was by Emma’s side, her hand on her arm instantly. She held Emma’s arm tightly, halting her attack on Hook.

“Emma, he isn’t worth it…”

Emma stopped. Her breath was ragged, her face still contorted in rage, but Regina could see past it. She could see the broken woman underneath. She could see the tears threatening to spill over in the woman’s eyes and she could see the desperation.

Emma allowed Regina to pull her away from Hook, allowed her to pull her into a hug. Emma was stiff as a board, unyielding but not fighting back either. At least, not until she realized that her son was staring at her with wide eyed horror.

She yanked herself out of Regina’s arms then and vanished, and it took a moment for Regina to realize that the dagger was once again in her hands.

Henry began to cry in earnest, for the first time truly understanding what had happened to his birthmother. It hadn’t been real to him until now. Regina grabbed him, pulling him into her arms while still clutching the dagger. Regina glared at the Charming’s, her own anger barely under control, “get the pirate out of my house, and don’t you dare come here again.”

Snow tried to apologize, “Regina…”

“Get. Out.” Her tone left no room for argument. The Charming’s helped Hook to his feet and led him out of the house, shutting the door behind them.


	3. Losing to Win

Another couple of weeks passed with the occasional Dark One sightings. Emma was destroying property, but not harming any people. She had left a tornado of destruction at the Charming’s apartment, Hook’s Ship was completely destroyed. The library was nearly torn apart and city hall was in shambles. The sheriff’s office was hit next and soon it became clear what Emma was doing. She was looking for answers. Everywhere she went, she searched desperately, finding nothing and then the darkness would take over and she would destroy the place in her frustration.

Gold’s shop was hit next and Regina was called to help repair the damage. She was exhausted. She and Henry had been following Emma’s trail ever since her most recent disappearance. Regina had been forced to repair each of the places Emma visited, and yet they were no closer to finding out where she was staying. Henry had thrown himself headfirst into researching his role as an author, desperately hoping that maybe he could undo what had been done as he had Regina’s death.

He still curled up with her every night but both of them were past the point of emotional displays. They had exhausted themselves beyond the point of tears.

Belle spent the day with Regina, trying to cheer her up, to no avail. Emma was becoming more and more destructive and Regina feared it was too late to save her, that Emma no longer believed she could be saved.

She returned home that evening, her magic completely spent, her nerves frayed almost beyond repair. She curled up with Henry on the couch and dozed off.

 

                                                                                                                                 ***

 

Several hours later, She woke with a start. Emma was in her vault… she could feel it. Regina gently untangled herself from her son and transported herself to the vault immediately.

The place was a disaster. Everything had been thrown violently about and Emma sat in the center of the room tears streaming down her face, her expression contorted in pain.

Regina stepped towards her hesitantly, and gasped when she saw what Emma was holding in her hand. Emma’s heart, still bright red, with darkness swirling around it, trying to overcome it. Regina could see where the darkness had penetrated it, and where Emma had fought back. Her heart was bruised, torn and tattered. Beating weakly. And Emma was holding it in her palm, squeezing it tightly, as if she was trying to…

“oh Emma….” Regina knelt beside Emma, placing her hands over Emma’s.

Emma’s eyes snapped up to meet hers, “ I can’t do this anymore Regina… I am not strong enough…I have to make it stop.” She squeezed her heart again and Regina gasped in horror as Emma’s face once again contorted in pain.

“Emma, No!” her fingers pried Emma’s heart out of her hands and cradled it gently in her own, as Emma stared at her in surprise.

“Regina… please… I can’t do this anymore… I’ve become a monster. My parents, Hook…. Henry.” A sob tore its way out of her throat and with a wave, Emma summoned her dagger, pressing it into Regina’s free hand.

“Please, Regina… you promised…”

Regina shook her head, dropping the dagger, cradling Emma’s heart protectively in both her hands.

“you are not a monster Emma Swan. You are the strongest, bravest, kindest woman I have ever known. You can be a complete idiot sometimes, stubborn and foolish but you are not a monster.”

Emma’s gaze hardened, “ you promised me.”

Regina shook her head, “not like this Emma…”

Emma grabbed her dagger and snatched the heart out of Regina’s hands.

“ I told you I am a threat. I told you to protect your family at all costs.”

Emma vanished and Regina gasped in horror. Emma had gone to the lost boys camp. She could feel Emma’s presence there, as if Emma was baiting her, wanting her to follow.

She followed Emma there and saw Emma standing behind Robin, holding him in a choke hold.

 Emma shot a look at Regina and grinned, the dark one firmly back in place…

“I warned you Regina..”

 “what’s it going to be Regina… your soul mate or me?”

Regina stared at her in shock and at first she was tempted to do what Emma wanted her to do. She was tempted to kill Emma for threatening Robin.

but Emma’s previous words came back to her. Emma had made her swear to protect her family from the Dark one, no matter what. Emma had wanted Regina to promise to kill her, and now Emma was using that promise as her way out. She wanted to die.

The gravity of Emma’s desperation, that she was trying to bait Regina into killing her slammed into her full force.

Robin spoke clearly, unafraid of the Dark One, “Emma, if Regina kills you, then she becomes the dark one and your sacrifice would be for nothing.”

Robins words cut through the silence. Emma laughs. “ she won’t… the Darkness is bound to me and me alone. I die, it dies with me.  Do you really think I would burden her with that Robin?”

Understanding dawned in Regina’s mind, “ your visits around town… you were looking for a way to bind the darkness to you?”

Emma laughed coldy, “ I told you, I cant beat it, its stronger than me… this is the only way to destroy it.”

Regina shook her head, “ its not. Emma, there has to be another way.”

“you know there isn’t… so please, just do me a favor and get it over with.”

Regina shook her head. “ I wont kill you.”

“then I will kill your soul mate, and then you will have to kill me.”

An idea occurred to her. Regina shoved her hand into her own chest and brought her own heart, surprised at how easy it was. she held her heart up for Emma to see.

“ let him go Emma… or I will crush my own heart.”

Emma’s eyes widened in fear… “you wouldn’t…”

Regina gave her a level stare, “ why not? Isn’t that what you were just doing? Crushing your own heart?”

“ Regina… put your heart back…” Emma no longer sounded threatening. She was pleading.

“Release Robin.”

Emma didn’t move so Regina squeezed the heart in her hand, immediately crying out in pain. Her knees buckled and her vision swam and she was sure she would hit the ground but instantly, Emma was by her side, Robin forgotten. Emma’s strong arms caught Regina as she fell, holding her up.

Robin and his merry men backed away from the scene, leaving the two women alone in the woods.

“Why would you do that?” Emma raged at her.

Regina gave Emma a weak smile, “because you can’t stand the idea of me in pain, especially knowing you caused it.”

“Regina… I am not strong enough… I cant do this anymore… its too strong. I am going to hurt someone I care about and I can’t live with that…”

Regina pressed her heart into Emma’s hands. “ I trust you Emma Swan. I know you.”

Emma stared at the heart in her hand, at the fading tendrils of darkness swirling around bright red.

“You helped me fight the darkness Emma. You believed in me when no one else did. I believe in you.”

Emma warred with herself. “you shouldn’t.” she finally whispered. Regina tried not to react to the sensation of Emma’s fingers gently caressing her heart.

“you would never hurt me Emma.”

“ you don’t know that.”

“ I do know that. I know that because of who you are. And because… of what you feel for me.”

Emma’s eyes snapped up and the darkness fought for control again. “ I feel nothing for you.”

Regina shrugged lightly, placing her hand over Emma’s, wrapping Emma’s fingers around her heart, “ then crush it.”

“wh… what?”

“ if you feel nothing for me Emma, then it should be easy for you to crush my heart… so… go ahead. If that’s all you are now, a monster, pure darkness,  and you don’t really love me like I know you do, then it should be easy for you.”

Emma stared at her, horrified. “ I… I cant do that.”

“Because you love me. that’s why you sacrificed yourself isn’t it?”

The darkness tried to make Emma deny it, Regina could see the war in Emma’s eyes, but she was fighting it again, for Regina. Always for Regina. The Emma that was last seen in Gold’s shop several weeks ago fought her way back to the surface, now was the time she had been waiting for. She was sure Regina would do what she needed her to now. Still, she was terrified. She had been battling this for weeks, trying to find another way, any way but this. But there was no way out. Merlin was right, she had to lose before she could win.

“Emma, look at me…”

Emma met Regina’s gaze, her eyes full of pain, and sorrow.

“Do you love me Emma?”

Emma gave a slight nod, obviously fighting hard to even do that.

“do you trust me?”

Emma took longer to respond, her voice cracking, “the darkness wants me to tell you no. it wants me to crush your heart… but I cant… I won’t.”

“Because you love me, and you do trust me.”

Emma said nothing, fighting a silent war and crying. Regina gently wiped away the tears streaming down the dark one’s face.

“ I love You, Emma Swan.”

Emma’s head snapped up, her mouth opening and closing rapidly, fighting the urge to reveal her plans to Regina but she closed her mouth and let silent tears slip down her cheeks instead, _god I hope this works… for you, for us…._

Regina cupped Emma’s face in her hands, “we are both idiots… not seeing what was right in front of us, being to afraid to be honest about it. we wasted so much time… and then I lost you to this and all the sudden, I couldn’t ignore it anymore.”

Emma’s shoulders were shaking as Regina pulled them both to their feet, her hands returning to Emma’s face, forcing her to meet her gaze.

“you told me once that everyone deserved their happy ending, but I think you meant everyone but you. you do deserve a happy ending Emma Swan, you always have.”

The darkness fought back, trying to shove Regina away from Emma, Emma’s fingers tightening around Regina’s heart, causing her to gasp and lose focus for a moment, but she forced herself to meet Emma’s gaze again, her eyes and voice steady, “ you would never intentionally hurt me. that’s not who you are. You may not be strong enough Emma, but maybe we are.”

Emma’s eyes lit up at the recognition of that phrase, those were the words Emma had been waiting to hear. _Its time._ Emma took a deep breath, pushed forward and before Regina realized what was happening, Regina’s heart was back in her chest.

Emma looked Regina in the eyes, and asked, “do you trust me Regina?”

Regina nodded without hesitation. Emma gave her a wry grin and backed away from Regina. She lifted the dagger with her name emblazed on it and thrust the dagger into her own chest.

Regina shrieked in horror, “Emma, no!”

 But Emma had a smile still tugging on her lips, “ it’s okay Regina… you saved  me.. you always do. Take care of Henry… and tell everyone I am sorry”

It was that horrible night all over again. but in reverse. The darkness seeped out of Emma through her wound, winding and twisting horribly, being chased out by white light from Emma’s chest. Emma’s hands ripped the dagger out and held it up and the darkness twisted around it, being forced there by Emma’s magic. Regina watched, paralyzed, unable to move as the process continued.

The darkness fought back violently but Emma’s magic contained it. it had nowhere to go but back into the dagger, any attempts to reach out to Regina were thwarted. Finally the darkness was completely contained within the dagger and Emma directed all of her light magic at the object until it exploded, shattering into fine dust that evaporated.

Emma sank to her knees, her magic fading and then blinking out. Her hands covered her wound and came away bloody. A sob tore its way out of Regina’s throat and she wrapped her arms around Emma, holding her up.

“You idiot! I was going to give you true loves kiss… I t would have broken the spell without killing you!”

Emma stopped breathing, going completely limp in Regina’s arms. Regina pounded her fists against Emma’s chest, in frustration.

“ Why? You were my happy ending! Emma!”

She shook with the force of her sobs, her heart feeling like it was shattering into millions of pieces. She stared at the Saviors body for several moments before suddenly leaning over her.

“This didn’t work on Daniel. There is no reason for me to believe it will work on you… but I have to try…”

She brushed the hair out of Emma’s face gently, leaned over her and pressed her lips against Emma’s. “ I love you Emma Swan.” for a moment, nothing happened.

Regina despaired and yanked her heart back out of her chest, deciding to crush it rather than live with the pain of a world without Emma Swan, but as her hand tightened around her heart, another hand found hers and Emma’s voice washed over her, “ I know I put that back where it belongs…”

Regina’s head snapped up, her eyes meeting Emma’s. She gasped. Emma was no longer silver, her eyes no longer dark. Emerald green orbs stared at her in concern.

“ I thought I asked you to take care of Henry…”

“ you were dead.”

“ I told you, I had to die for the darkness to be destroyed. It had to be done Regina.”

“ it didn’t, true love’s kiss…”

Emma’s  hands tugged her down to her mouth effectively silencing her protest. The kiss was chaste, gentle, but enough to keep Regina focused on the kiss as Emma’s fingers slid around hers, gently taking her heart and placing it back in her chest, ever so gently.

Emma pulled back and sat up, giving Regina a crooked smile. “ it wouldn’t have worked, the only way for the curse to be destroyed was for me to complete the sacrifice. The price had to be paid. I had to do it. I knew you would bring me back though.”

“but, you were going to kill Robin…”

Emma shook her head, “ that was the darkness, not me. it knew I was trying to contain it, and it was fighting me. it wanted you to kill me, to make sacrifice impossible. Because that is the only thing that could really destroy it. Merlin told me I would have to lose to win… It took me a while to figure out what he meant, but basically, I had to tether the darkness to someone with pure light magic, and kill both in order to truly destroy it. it was the only way Regina. I tried to find another way, but that was it.”

“So when you were trying to crush your own heart?”

Emma grimaced, “you weren’t supposed to see that. I was trying to complete the sacrifice… I was supposed to complete the sacrifice before you found me, and then bring me back with true love’s kiss but I wasn’t strong enough.. You brought me back to the surface, gave me the strength to do what needed to be done.”

Regina was still angry with her.

“What is your excuse madam mayor… why would you want to crush your own heart?”

Regina shook her head, ashamed of her weakness. “it hurt so badly, the thought of losing you. I couldn’t… I couldn’t deal with it. knowing you had given everything for me.”

Emma held Regina’s hands in hers.

“It’s all over now. The power of the dark one has been destroyed. Both of our hearts are fine… and we should keep it that way.”

Regina nodded her agreement and allowed Emma to pull her into another kiss. This one was brief and chaste as well, but full of emotion.

Regina pulled back suddenly, remembering that Emma was with Hook, “ Emma, Hook…”

Emma shook her head firmly, “ not all of that was the darkness, I meant what I said. Hook and I are through. I was never in love with him, it was always you, even though I didn’t know it until the darkness tried to take you.”

Fresh tears spilled from Regina’s eyes and Emma wiped them away tenderly, “hey, its okay. I am okay, we are here… I am not going anywhere…”

Regina nodded and yanked Emma into a tight hug, earning a chuckle from the blonde.

“ don’t you ever do that to me again Emma. I can’t take it. I need you too much!”

Emma nodded and rested her head on Regina’s shoulder, burying her face in the crook of Regina’s neck. She inhales Regina’s scent and breathes against her pulse point, “ I won’t.”

Regina shivers as Emma’s breath ghosts past her ear. The two women finally separate and Regina helps her to her feet. Emma is still weak and has to lean against Regina for support. Regina protectively wraps an arm around the savior, holding her up, holding her impossibly close, “ let’s go home and see our son.”

Emma nods, “ we can deal with everything else later.”


	4. Epilogue

It’s six months later and things are settling into a new normal. Everything is different now. Emma lives with Regina and Henry in the mansion. They never discussed it, it just seemed like the logical next move. Regina had taken Emma home to see their son and while Emma and Henry had an emotional reunion, Regina called on her magic and all of Emma’s things appeared in their home.  Emma had been mildly surprised but had immediately sidled up to Regina and pulled her into a lingering kiss, letting her know she approved.

Emma had broken up with the pirate again, and he left Storybrooke soon after, finding that without Emma, he had no reason or desire to stay. Emma slowly rebuilt her relationship with her parents, and it was still far from perfect, they were healing.

Maleficent and Lily somehow became an extension of their family and now lived at the mansion as well. After learning that Emma had asked Mal and Lily to help keep an eye on Regina, Regina had insisted that they were part of the family and it would be unacceptable for them to keep living out of the bed and breakfast when she had several spare rooms. Emma and Lily had repaired their friendships and in a lot of ways, had become almost like sisters.

For the first time, Regina loved living in the massive house, before it had always seemed too big, so silent, so empty whenever Henry or Emma were not filling it with laughter. Now it was filled with laughter constantly. Her living room and dining room were always full of life, love and laughter.

Emma and Regina had settled into a routine of their own, eating lunch together every day, going on weekly dates, both of them saw Archie to help them process everything that had happened and every other week, they both attended with Henry, as a family.

Regina knew eventually some other danger would come out of the shadows and threaten her newfound happiness but she found that she was no longer fearful of it. she had her happy ending, she was secure in it and she knew that no matter what came their way, they would deal with it together, as a family.

Regina is in the kitchen, cooking for a massive family dinner. The charming’s were invited as well and would be arriving shortly. She worked quickly, humming to herself, finding herself at peace, perfectly content.

She grins when two strong arms wrap around her waist, tugging her into the body at her back. Emma buries her face in Regina’s hair and inhales deeply, “ you always smell so good.”

Regina laughs at playfully swats at Emma before turning in her arms and kissing her. Emma hummed in contentment as Regina’s lips moved over her own and tugged the brunette even closer.

“come on moms… seriously… are you guys even capable of being in the same room and not making out?”

Regina pulled back and shot a warning glare at her son who was grinning impishly.

Emma simply turned Regina back to her and waggled her eyebrows mischieviously, “ I think our son needs a lesson in what making out actually entails…”

“miss swan!...” Emma’s mouth covered hers, cut her off, her tongue  teasing at Regina’s mouth, beggin for entrance. Regina opened her mouth to the blonde with a groan, unable to resist. Kissing Emma was by far one of her favorite pass times. Their son’s very loud protest fell on deaf ears and finally he turned and stomped out of the room, shaking his head in mock disgust. While he wasn’t overly fond of watching his moms, he was very glad that they had finally figured out how perfect for each other they were.

The doorbell yanked the two women out of their haze and Regina quickly pulled back and straightened her appearance, “ how do I look?”

“ perfect, as always…” Regina blushed at the compliment before heading for the door. Emma beat her to it, “ I got this, you finish up…”

Regina gave her a warm smile and returned to the oven to check on the lasagna. Henry returned to the kitchen to help lay out the plates.

Mal and Lily emerged from their rooms and joined the fray, helping wherever they were needed as Emma greeted her parents and baby Neal at the door.

Soon, they were all sitting around the dining room table, laughing and talking. Regina made her usual quips whenever the charmings’ left her an opening, Henry and Emma engaged in pointless debates while Lily and Maleficent egged them on. Regina looked around the table with a proud smile, so grateful for the gift she had been given. Her family was dysfunctional, their lives far from normal. She was still a work in progress, but she had come so far, they all had. Her eyes met Emma’s and she couldn’t help but smile. Things would never be easy but Regina had experienced enough in her life now to know that they best things never come easy, and they certainly don’t come free.

Her journey was far from over, and was rarely easy, but with this family by her side, rooting her on, with Emma and her promises of together forever, she was confident that they would be okay, no matter what happened. Because as Henry loved to say, that’s who they are, and this is what they do.


End file.
